Floating friction yarn tension



June 9, 1942. Q MARTEL, JR 2,285,733

FLOATING FRICTION YARN TENSION Filed July 19, 1940 Ti 151i.

28 all" -r I:

40 jw dum-umii j 40 K 56 34 I I C .-32 4? Am %5 Q0 26 lNVENTOR Ednwar0-MtZ/i8ljl' I AT RNEY Patented June 9, 1942 FLOATING FRICTION YARNTENSION Edmour'O. Martel, Jr., Ramsey, N. .L, assignor to Feldlinka Silk00., Garner-ville, N. Y.

Application July 19, 1940, Serial No. 346,251

6 Claims.

The present invention relates to thread tensioning devices, and'it hasspecific relation to a floating friction yarn tension device that may beattached readily to any conventional winding or quilling machine.

Heretofore, it has been customary to use yarn tensioning devices onwinding or quilling machines, but such devices generally employed aspring tensioning means or had an axially mounted shaft or stud-likeprojection for receiving and holding a plurality of tensioning weightsin their proper positions against a fixed base plate or member. It hasbeen discovered, however, that such devices slow up the movement of theyarn or thread, and have a tendency to become jerky at high speeds,producing an uneven tension especially when knots, twists and slugs(thelatter being the trade term for rough spots in yarn) are beingpassed therethrough.

An object of the present invention is the pro vision of a yarntensioning device that is simple and inexpensive to manufacture, andeconomical and eflicient to operate.

A further object of the invention is to provide a yarn tensioning devicehaving a freely movable or floating friction"- base that maybe easilyand quickly assembled and attached to Fig. 1 is a perspective view of ayarn tensioning device constructed in accordance with my invention,which is shown suitably mounted upon a supporting bar by which the samemay be attached to a conventional winding or quilling machine, andillustrating diagrammatically the op- I eration of the device in aconventional winding a conventional yarn winding or quilling machine.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a yarn tensioningdevice that not only has a floating friction base, but permits theshortest unobstructed passage of a yarn or thread therethrough, whichshort and unobstructed passage permits higher speeds of oper-'- ationthan those formerly employed with conventional yarn tensioning devicesof the character above described, thereby permitting greater productionon identical winding or quilling machines.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a simple, compactand efilcient floating. friction yarn tension device that gives a steadyeven tension to the yarn or thread at high speeds, and which permitsknots, twists and slugs to pass. therethrough while maintaining an eventension at such high speeds.

Other and further objects and advantages of the invention reside in thedetailed construction of the device, which result in simplicity, economyand efficiency, and whichwill be apparent from the followingdescription, wherein a preferred form of embodiment is shown, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawing, forming a part hereof, whereinlike numerals indicate like parts, in which:

operation.

Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the device shown in Fig. 1, the samebeing taken substantially along the line 2-2 thereof, looking in thedirection of the arrows; and

Fig. 3 is another cross-sectional view of the device shown in Fig. 1,the same being taken substantially along the line 33 thereof, looking inthe direction of the arrows.

Referring now to the drawing, there is shown in Fig. 1 a yarn tensioningdevice l0 mounted upon a suitable supporting bar i2, and illustratingdiagrammatically its use in connection with a conventional spool or yarnspindle M, from which a yarn or thread i6 is being drawn for anysuitable purpose under a constant and even tension, such as, forexample, rewinding onto a larger spool or warp beam, which isdiagrammatically indicated at Hi. When the yarn or thread I6 is beingmoved .in the direction of the arrows, it is obvious that it would havea tendency to unwind loosely from the spool or spindle I! if notensioning means were employed, and that the slack so created wouldprevent an even and tight rewinding onto the larger spool or warp beamHi. In order to prevent slack in the yarn or thread I6 and to insurethat the same will-be wound upon the spool l8 with a uniform tension,the iioating friction yarn tension device It] is mounted between thespindle i4 and spool or warp beam I8.

It will be understood that the arrangement illustrated diagrammaticallyin Fig. 1 is merely for the purpose of depicting an embodiment of oneuse to which the tensioning. device maybe employed, and that many otheruses may be found wherein it is desirable to place a moving thread underan even tension without departing from the spirit of the invention.

The floating friction yarn tension device It! consists of a base member20 of cylindrical shape, which may be made of any suitable metallicmaterial, desirably non-rusting. The base member 20 in the modificationdepicted is made of substantial thickness to provide a suitableattaching a threaded machine attaching bolt 24 by which it is suitab yfastened removably tothe supporting bar l2. The supporting bar I2 isprovided with an aperture l3 for facilitating atto, and may beintegrally formed therewith if desired. The sleeve member 28 projectsabove the base member 20 for a substantial distance, which distance maybe predetermined by the thickness of the floating friction disc and thethickness and number of gravity weight members to be used in connectiontherewith to produce the amount of tension desired. A portion of thesidewall of the sleeve member 28 is suitably notched or cut-away, asindicated at 30, to facilitate insertion and removal of the floatingfriction disc 32 and the gravity weight membars 34, hereinafter to bedescribed in greater detail. r

A pair of diametrically opposed apertures 36 and 38 are provided in thesidewall of the cuplike receptacle or sleeve member 28 in spacedrelation to the notched or cut-away portion 30. The apertures 36 and 33are disposed intermediate the bottom and top of the receptacle or sleevemember 28, and have integral external projecting flanges!!! extendingcircumferentially thereof. The apertures 36 and 38 and their respectiveprojecting flanges 4B are provided internally with porcelain sleeves oreyelets 42, which are suitably secured therein in any conventionalmanner, such as being glued thereto, etc. These porcelain eyelets 22have rounded edges, as indicated at 44, and provide a smoothsubstantially frictionless surface for guiding the yarn or thread l6into and out of the device l0, thereby facilitating passage of the yarntherethrough without danger of cutting or otherwise damaging the same. Y

The "floating friction disc 32, which provides substantially a floatingfrictionless base for the yarn or thread it, is desirably made of glass.While plastic or other composition substances might be usedsatisfactorily for a short time, it will be found that they are too softin texture to provide a durable disc. Consequently, if such types ofdiscs are utilized, they must be frequently replaced as they become wornby the high speed movement of the yarn or thread is thereover. A worndisc presents a roughened surface which has a tendency to damage theyarn or catch the knots, twists or slugs causing jerks in the windingoperation. The disc 32 is shown curved or beveled on its opposite edgesto present a smooth curved surface to the yarn or thread, therebyeliminating any sharp corners which might have a tendency to cut thethread at times. While I- have shown both edges of the disc 32 curved orbeveled, it will be obvious that only the upper edge, which contacts theyarn or thread, need be curved or beveled. I have found, however, thatif both edges are curved when the disc is made no special care need betaken in assembling the device III to make sure that the curved edge isup against the yarn Ii as would be the case where only one edge had beencurved or beveled.

The conventional gravity weight member 34 may be made of any suitablematerial, but I have found that if the weight member to be depositeddirectly on the yarn or thre'ad I6 is made of glass, better results areobtained. If additional tension is desired, additional weights may beemployed, as indicated at 48, wherein the additional weight is shown inthe form of a conventional washer. It is, of course, to be understoodthat if such weights are made of materials having dlfierent specificgravities or having different thicknesses, it is possible to increase ordecrease the amount of tension imposed upon the yarn or thread l8passing thereunder to any desirable degree.

In assembling the tensioning device ill for operation, the floatingfriction disc 32 is deposited in the cup-like receptacle 28 over thebase plate 20, and the free end of the yarn or thread l6, as it unwindsfrom the spindle I4, is passed through the eyelet 42 mounted in theaperture 38 over the floating friction, disc 32 and out through theopposite eyelet 42 of the aperture 36 from which it is threaded to itsstarting position on the spool 18. One or more gravity weights 34 and/or48 are thereupon deposited into the cup-like receptacle or sleeve 28over the top of the yarn or thread l'6 passing over the disc 32. Thenumber of gravity weights 34 to be positioned in the cup-like receptacle23 depending entirely upon the amount of tension desired to be placedupon the yarn or thread It. 'Ihe tensioning device I0 is now ready foroperation. By providing a freely movable or rotatable floating friction"bottom disc 32 for the yarn or threadit to pass thereover while passingunder the gravity weight 34, I have found that the yarn or thread l6 maybe rewound at a much more rapid rate of speed than was heretoforepossible with the conventional tensioning devices above described, andthat knots, twists and slugs will be passed therethrough uninterruptedlywithout causing any unevenness or jerkiness in the movement of the yarnor thread It or tension. The tension remains steady and even under allconditions of operation. In operations where a stop motion is frequentlyimparted and the yarn is subjected to violent movement due to theoperation of the stop motion, .1 have found that my floating frictionyarn tension device l0 prevents a hammeringaction to be set up, which,upon conventional types of tensioning devices above described, issometimes sufficient to cut the yarn or thread 5. It will be noted thatthe yarn or thread 16 passes directly through the device H! in theshortest possible path, and is not subjected to a devious course arounda shaft or stud such as encountered in conventional tensioning deviceshaving an axial shaft for positioning and retaining the weights thereon.This feature, plus the unobstructed passageway for the yarn, is believedto facilitate the passing of the yarn or thread therethrough evenly atgreater speeds than heretofore practiced, which increases the production01' the machines equipped with my devices.

By use of the term "cup-like receptacle in the specification and claims,I do not mean to limit the invention to an open-top receptacle havingclosed sides, but it is to be understood that the term shall beconstrued generically and to include any kind of a. receptacle capableof retaining the disc and weights therein, such as, for example, a basemember having a series of upstanding clrcumferentially spaced pe s, or alattice like sidewall construction, which is capable of retaining themembers in their respective positions of operation.

Although I have only described in detail one out departing from thespirit thereof or from the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

A tension device of the character described comprising a cup-likereceptacle having an inlet and outlet port extending through its sidethereof in diametrically spaced relation, said ports having anon-metallic sleeve, a non-metallic disc member mounted freely withinsaid receptacle, and a non-metallic gravity weight member mounted freelywithin said receptacle and adapted to apply pressure on the yarn passingtherethrough. I

2. A tension device of the character described comprising a cup-likereceptacle, a disc member mounted freely within said receptacle overwhich the yarn to be tensioned is adapted to be passed in the shortestpossible path, and a gravity weight member mounted freely within saidreceptacle and adapted to apply pressure on the yarn passingtherethrough.

3. A tension device of the character described comprising a cup-likereceptacle having means for fastening the same to a supporting bar,'diametrically spaced inlet and outlet ports mounted in its sides, adisc member mounted freely within said receptacle over which the yarnpassing through said device is adapted to be moved diametrically in theshortest possible path, and a weight member mounted freely within saidreceptacle to apply pressure on the yarn as it is passed over said discmember,

4. A tension device of the character described comprising a metalliccup-like receptacle having oppositely positioned inlet and outlet portsmounted in its sidewalls thereof, a glass disc member mounted freelywithin said receptacle over which the yarn passing through said deviceis adapted to be moved, and a glass gravity weight member mounted freelywithin said receptacle to apply pressure on the yarn as it is passedover said disc member.

5. A tension device of the character described comprising a cup-likereceptacle having closed upwardly extending sides, a portion of one sidebeing cut-away to afford access to said receptacle, oppositely spacedports extending through said closed sides, said portsbeing lined withnonmetallic sleeves, a non-metallic disc member mounted. freely withinsaid receptacle and below said ports over which the yarn passing throughsaid device is adapted to be moved, and a gravity weight member mountedfreely within said receptacle for applying pressure on the yarn as it ispassed over said glass disc member.

6. A tension device of the character described comprising a metalliccup-like receptacle having and open-top and closed upwardly extendingsides, one side having a portion thereof cutaway to afford access tosaid receptacle, diametrically spaced inlet and outlet ports extendingthrough said closed sides and lined with nonmetallic sleeves, a glassdisc member mounted freely within said receptacle and below said portsover which the yarn passing through said device is adapted to be moved,a gravity weight member mounted freely within said receptacle forapplying pressure on the yarn as it is passed over said glass discmember, and fastening means mounted on the underside of said receptaclefor securing the same to a supporting bar.

EDMOUR O, MAR'IEL, J a.

